Wreaths and tinsel seemed a far better option to Gary Fouts than laying off employees from his landscape maintenance business for the eighth year in a row. For this reason he opted to operate a Christmas Décor franchise in 1999 during the off-season for his New Lennox, Ill.-based company, then-named Principle Lawn Care & Maintenance. He made $30,000 from the... read more
Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed the 10-year extension of the irrigation contractor license into law Aug. 2. Without this extension, the law would have required irrigation contractors to be licensed plumbers in order to do any type of irrigation work in a commercial or residential landscape setting. “This is a big win for the irrigation industry and the people of... read more
Spring-Green honored Virginia-based franchisee Charlie Marshall at the company’s National Training Conference in Bloomingdale, Ill., earlier this month. Selected from a national network of franchise owners, Marshall was presented with the Founders Award, the highest receivable recognition for a member of the Spring-Green franchise system. “Spring-Green created a Founders Award many years ago to recognize the characteristics, values and efforts... read more
OAK BROOK, ILL.—The Illinois Landscape Contractors Association (ILCA) has announced the dates and location for its new Green Industry trade show, iLandscape: The Illinois Landscape Show. iLandscape will be held at the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center and Hotel in Schaumburg, Ill., from Feb. 5-7, 2014. ILCA chose the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center for a variety of reasons. For attendees, the venue... read more
